A story has been told about the early days of Narcotics Anonymous, when one of our founding members was seen going through the trash outside the NA service office. When asked what he was doing, he answered that he was looking for bottles to return for deposit so he could afford postage to respond to a letter from an NA member in Alaska. Every NA service committee has surely faced this simple truth at some point: The individual efforts of our members can go a long way, but willingness alone will not get a letter from California to Alaska, Brussels to St. Petersburg, or Tehran to Dubai.

This story illustrates two kinds of contributions as described by our Seventh Tradition. On one hand, we contribute our time and energy: showing up to meetings regularly, participating, and sharing with newcomers whenever we can. Our hopes and intentions are important, but it’s what we do that matters. We get involved in sponsorship and service. We give of ourselves freely without the expectation of receiving anything in return. Putting our gratitude into action by supporting Narcotics Anonymous gives real meaning to our belief that “we keep what we have only by giving it away.”

“Our hopes and intentions are important, but it’s what we do that matters.”

On the other hand, we give money to help pay for the services that keep NA alive and growing. Both of these types of contributions are important—in fact, most members contribute time, energy, and money—but in this pamphlet we are concerned primarily with voluntary financial contributions. Our groups pass a basket, hat, box, or tray at some point during each meeting so members can give money. ¹ The money we put in the basket allows our groups to keep the doors open, and to create a welcoming atmosphere of recovery for that shaky newcomer in the parking lot debating whether or not to come into the meeting. The money that reaches our service system helps support services that let other addicts, in our own communities and around the world, know that hope is available. Just as the cost of our own personal expenses—rent, food, and so on—go up from year to year, the amount of money needed to fund these basic services rises continually, especially as NA grows and as we seek additional ways to reach addicts.

We may notice some members giving a little more or a little less than others and wonder whether we’re giving the “right” amount. Giving our fair share doesn’t mean that everyone donates the same amount; it means each of us gives what we can based on what we have. When our lives improve as a result of our recovery, we often find that we can afford to give more. Maybe we feel uncomfortable when we realize that the beverage or snack we bought on our way to the meeting cost two or three times the amount we put in the basket. After considering what is most valuable to us, we usually decide to put more in the basket when we can. Whether we have a lot or a little, giving to our service system is an act of faith that helps us let go of some of our fears. Doing so can remind us that so long as our spiritual needs are taken care of, living problems are reduced to a point of comfort. We have faith that a power greater than ourselves will be expressed through our collective conscience.

“…To Further Our Primary Purpose…” –Eleventh Concept

A frequently quoted line from the Basic Text states, “The newcomer is the most important person at any meeting, because we can only keep what we have by giving it away.” Our groups put this idea into action in many ways. After a meeting is over, for instance, a newcomer talks with a few home group members, and one of them asks if the newcomer has a Basic Text. The newcomer might respond by asking how much the book costs, or by saying, “I can probably buy one next week.” The other members smile and make sure the newcomer leaves with a book. The newcomer mentions something about paying them back, and the response is simple: “Just keep coming back, so one of these days you can buy a book for a newcomer, too.”

“The newcomer is the most important person at any meeting, because we can only keep what we have by giving it away.”

Practicing self-support in NA doesn’t simply mean each of us pays our own way; we repay NA not just by taking care of ourselves, but by making a way for the newcomer to find recovery. Many of us have heard it shared in meetings that “even if I stayed clean for a hundred years, I could never repay NA for the freedom I’ve been given here.” In our addiction, all we did was take, which left us empty. In NA we are learning to become givers, and we are finding that giving fills us up. At first many of us felt we had an obligation to give back what was so freely given to us, but over time we began to be motivated by more of a forward-looking desire to contribute as we began to see the bigger picture of what NA can be and do.

NA members who came before us made sure we were able to find our way here. They kept the meeting doors open, put money in the basket to pay for a phoneline and posters, and brought literature and panels into facilities to share the NA message. Now we have the opportunity, as well as the responsibility, to give other addicts a chance to hear our message. Our financial contributions help pay for services on every level: local efforts to carry the message; regional support and services to areas; and world services, which not only assists existing NA communities, but also works to make NA available in other communities. Translation efforts, free or subsidized literature, fellowship development workshops—all of these services are carried out on behalf of NA as a whole, to make our message available to still-suffering addicts worldwide.

Most of us feel some level of ownership and responsibility for services provided on NA’s behalf. Contributing our time and money to NA gives us an opportunity to manifest that feeling in a concrete way and strengthens our spiritual connection to the service system and the program. The Second Concept reminds us that the NA groups have “final responsibility and authority for NA services.” For example, we may have been to a meeting where the basket was passed twice because there wasn’t enough collected for rent the first time, only to see members dig deeper the second time around. When there is a clear connection between the money we put in the basket and NA’s needs, most of us are willing to give more. After all, NA belongs to us and its well-being depends on our efforts. We begin to realize that we do not have to wait until some part of the service system is suffering before we contribute.

There is a spiritual satisfaction in freely giving to support the fellowship that saved our lives. We give what we can, knowing that our contributions become part of a worldwide effort to share recovery.